Aphids are all small insects that colonize plants by the hundreds and suck their sap to feed, especially in early spring, because they love young shoots and buds. They weaken plants and attract other insects, such as ants. Ants love aphids and will protect them. The natural methods to avoid them and get rid of them is to spray a solution of canola oil and soapy water on the plants.

Mealybugs are all small insects that take pleasure when the weather is hot and humid. They suck the sap of plants. Their presence can often be observed thanks to a whitish substance in which they wrap. Natural methods to avoid them and get rid of them: Spray the leaves with a solution of black soap, oil and boiling alcohol (1 tsp of each ingredient diluted in 1 liter of water). Clean the affected sheets with a cloth soaked in beer or alcohol, then rinse with clean water.

Caterpillars are butterfly larvae. They devour the leaves of plants in the garden and vegetable garden very quickly, and can destroy a crop in less time than it takes to write it. Natural methods to avoid them and get rid of them : Cut the infested parts, and burn them immediately. Spray on the plants a solution made with rhubarb leaves.

The tick can transmit many viruses and bacteria including Lyme disease. The best way to avoid ticks is to use diatomaceous earth. DE consists of very sharp, very small rocks, which cut the tick. They will avoid places where there is DE for this reason.

Are you learning something as challenging as a new language? It’s difficult. Some days it feels impossible. What’s the pay-off? I have no idea. What if there were no pay-offs in life, and your entire existence was the point of it all? I’m actually one of those people that has incredible activation energy, to the point where it is hard to sleep if there is something I need to do. I want to do whatever it is immediately.

All of my gardening uses containers, and most of them are some form of plastic. To be exact, they are most often made of High Density Polyethylene (HDPE). If you look on the coffee container, you will see a recycling number 2, which signifies that the container is made from HDPE. HDPE is commonly used in milk and juice bottles, detergent bottles, shampoo bottles, grocery bags, and cereal box liners. It is considered “safe,” but has been shown to leach estrogenic chemicals which are dangerous to fetuses and infants. I have read that plastics #1, 2, 4 and 5 are considered safe for adults.

As far as growing plants in HDPE containers, consider that there is much disagreement over the use of plastics in growing food. The fact remains that most commercial growers employ plastic in one form or another when growing crops. You have the plastic pipes that irrigate crops and greenhouses, plastics used for covering crops, plastics used in row cropping, plastic mulches and even plastics that are used when growing organic food crops.

Most of the controversy involves the use of bisphenol A (Bisphenol A). While neither proven nor disproven, scientists do agree that BPA is a concern for infants, and most countries have banned its use in baby bottles. As for gardening, BPA is a rather large molecule compared to the ions which a plant absorbs, so it is unlikely it can be passed through the cell walls of the roots into the plant itself. BPA has two phenol-groups in its molecular structure and the molecule is non-polar. There is theoretically no way for the soil’s BPA to get into the crop. All materials need to pass through the Casparian strip of the plant in order to make it through the root’s endodermis and into the vasculature.

I have luck with peppers, basil, arugula, and cucumbers. I have not had luck with cantaloupes or cilantro. I believe it is too hot and the air too dry for these plants. When you grow peppers and basil, you want to cut off the top occasionally. This will force the plant to spread.

Peppers exist in a multitude of colors, shapes, flavors and even sizes. This vegetable is a part of the fruit-vegetable group, like tomatoes, cucumbers and egglants. Green peppers and lesser-known purple peppers have a more pronounced taste, while red, yellow, white and orange peppers are softer. Did you know that a green pepper is an unripe red pepper?

After researching the types of trees that are commonly planted in the Las Vegas area, I believe my tree is not an African Sumac, but is a Weeping Acacia. The African Sumac has small, red fruit, and I have never seen any fruit or flowering on my tree. The yellow leaves that I have worried about, may actually be the result of salt in the root zone.

High salt levels in the soil can cause chlorosis (yellowing) of the leaves. If this is the case, leaching can mitigate it. Leaching is the application of a large volume of water (usually 4 or 5 times normal run-times), several times per year. This large volume of water carries the salt deep below the roots, and out of the rooted area of the plant. With normally high levels of salts in our soil and water, leaching is a good general landscape practice.

Although it rained early in the year, it has not rained much since the end of February. I normally do not water the tree heavily until the weather becomes very warm. Salt may have been able to intrude into the root zone during that time. In this area, most irrigation targets the root, but rain allows for delivery of nitrogen from the atmosphere.

I promised that I would show one of the packets of seeds I planted in a plastic bag on 5/16. This one is the first one I opened, and it is spinach. Less than one week, and one of the seeds has germinated and grown a large root. The root followed gravity, so it is easy to identify which end is which. I place the planting in my container, give it some water….and wait.

I believe this method works so well because I avoid disease and pests found in soil, and changes in soil temperature. I highly recommend this method. I must now prepare more containers, and I only have one empty one left. I did not expect to be this successful. Almost every habanero seed I planted in bags, has germinated.